''Assessing benefit-incidence results using decompositions. The case of health policy in Argentina.''

( 2006, Vol. 4 No.40 )

This paper discusses the use of aggregate and microeconometric decompositions to compare benefit-incidence results over time. Decompositions are applied to explore changes in targeting in health policies directed to pregnant women and children under 4 in Argentina. The results suggest that although health public programs are pro-poor, incidence changes in the period 1997-2001 were pro-rich due to at least two factors: a substantial reduction in the fertility rate of poor couples, and an increase in the use of public facilities by wealthier households, likely triggered by the economic crisis.